A new proposal for affordable housing in Hilo has taken another step forward as the results of a draft environmental assessment for a 90-unit housing project for seniors has found no significant impact on the environment. The results ensure that the developers should feel comfortable submitting it for an actual environmental impact study.
The project is called Hale Ola O Mohouli, which would be built on a parcel of land coming in at just over 9 acres on Mohouli Street. The developer of the project is Hawaii Island Community Development Corp, a non-profit organization with the stated mission of assisting low- and moderate-income Big Island residents by providing them with affordable, accessible housing options.
Keith Kato, HICDC executive director, said, “We’re proposing a mix of senior and family units. The concept we’re trying to implement here … is called a ‘pocket neighborhood.’ Pocket neighborhoods are basically a cluster of small structures, single-family and duplex buildings, around a common green, so they form a nice social setting where people get to know their neighbors — and, hopefully, it develops more of a sense of community.”
This is not the HICDC’s first project in Hawaii. They are also the developer of a 182-unit building for seniors and a 30-unit building for seniors.
According to the draft of the EA, the project will cost about $47 million. It will require a zoning change for the land from agricultural to urban for the project to begin. Some other hurdles include a national pollutant discharge elimination system permit, grading, grubbing and driveway permits, and building permits.
As long as everything goes to plan, the draft says that the project will be ready to begin late next year and has an estimated completion date of mid-2024.
Once completed, the development will be aimed at providing housing for those who have an income of 60% or less of the area mean income, which is $75,200 annually. Currently, about 6,350 households on Hilo meet that target demographic. An additional 1,530 households are eligible in the secondary target market, which includes Wainaku, Pepeekeo, Keaau, and Kurtistown.
Within the draft, the development team makes the case for the need of the new building.
“Until recently, home construction on the Big Island had outpaced population growth, albeit skewed to upper income levels,” the draft says. “Since shortly after the start of the coronavirus pandemic, the demand for housing has skyrocketed — partly fueled by mainland retirees and tech workers fleeing crowded urban areas — and the affordable housing crisis has worsened. The proposed project would answer the need for additional affordable rental housing in East Hawaii at a centrally located site supplied with existing utility infrastructure, within a mile or two of shopping, schools and job centers.”
